Cutting School
“We immediately started cutting everything that we could think of that would first of all not impact the students directly,” O’Connell said. “We stopped field trips and extracurricular activities. We did not spend any money on classroom supplies. We actually cut back on some of our bus trips, but we still have to maintain our home-to-school transportation. We stopped doing a lot of the maintenance. We had some purchases we had been planning to make, like computers and media-type things, and we didn’t do them.”
The district was unable to meet the $350,000 reduction — electricity and water cuts ended up being impossible to achieve, O’Connell said — and so now they’re dipping into their reserve for $50,000.
“We will be reducing teaching staff by about five teachers [out of 56 district-wide], and we are reducing other staff members,” she said about the coming school year. “We’re reducing counselor services. We’re cutting bus routes. And now we’re waiting to see what else we may need to cut.”
Everyone is still waiting for final word on final cuts for next year. And districts are unsure what sort of federal stimulus money they may end up with.
“This is uncharted territory,” said O’Connell. “We’ve never been here before, and it’s scary.”
Hester, with the McKinleyville District, said it’s a little too much to take. “I’ve been working in school business for 15 years, and this is definitely by far the worst that I have ever seen,” she said. “I know that the intention at every school district is to stay as far away from [cutting] student programs as possible, but I think at this point in time that’s impossible. It’s impossible. Because you cannot take hits this large and not have it affect student education and student learning. You can’t. And I wish that our state legislature could understand that.”
Grantz, with Jacoby Creek School, said the most difficult thing with the elimination of teaching assistants there will be the reduction in one-on-one contact with the kids.
“It means the teachers will roll up their sleeves and do more work,” he said. “It means we all do more work.”
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on the cover
Railroad!
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Choo-choo Fantasies
Exposing this east-west rail nonsense
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Super Pay
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Today
44th Annual Kinetic Grand Championship Race
STAFF PICK / events, art, outdoors, sports, for kids, free / 9 a.m.-6 p.m. A 3-day, 42-mile kinetic sculpture race over land, sand, mud and water! LeMans start at the Noon Whistle on the Arcata Plaza. Follow the race through Manila, Eureka and into Ferndale on Memorial Day for the Glorious Finish. kineticgrandchampionship.com. 889-3024.
Flow 2012 Fashion Show
STAFF PICK / events / 8 p.m. Arcata Theatre Lounge, 1036 G St. Student designed and produced clothing. Fundraiser for Arcata Arts Institute. $35/$25 students. artsinstitute.net. 822-1220.
Woodside Preschool's Rummage/Bake Sale
events / 8 a.m.-noon. Woodside Preschool, 900 Hodgson St, Eureka. www.woodsidepreschool.com. 445-9132.
Lanphere Dunes Restoration
STAFF PICK / outdoors / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Meet at Pacific Union School. Help remove non-native invasives at the Lanphere Dunes Unit of the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Tools and gloves provided, wear work clothes and bring water. Carpool to the protected site. 444-1397.
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ONE Comments
Comment / By Mr. DH / May 28, 2009, 9:35 a.m.
This is the article I was talking about. Thanks for your time. Amanda Parker